A Decision Matrix–Guided Framework for Screening Plant Species for Sustainable Phytoremediation of Road Salt–Contaminated Roadside Soils

The widespread application of road deicing salts in northern regions has led to elevated salinity in roadside soils and adjacent watersheds. Phytoremediation offers a cost-effective and sustainable approach for mitigating salt contamination, but its success depends on utilizing plant species that can both tolerate and remove salt under roadside conditions. To systematically identify high-potential candidates from the large inventory of salt-tolerant plants in North America, we developed a quantitative decision matrix incorporating criteria related to ecological safety, establishment potential on disturbed soils, aboveground biomass production, biomass use-value, and salt uptake capacity. Thirteen of the highest-ranked species were subsequently evaluated for sodium (Na+) and chloride (Cl−) uptake in a controlled greenhouse study under saline and non-saline conditions. The greatest total salt uptake was observed in common sunflower (Helianthus annuus) (35.6 mg Na+ and 100.2 mg Cl− plant−1) and pitseed goosefoot (Chenopodium berlandieri) (18.6 mg Na+ and 76.0 mg Cl− plant−1), while perennial species including tall fescue turfgrass (Lolium arundinaceum), showy goldenrod (Solidago speciosa), and weeping alkaligrass (Puccinellia distans) also demonstrated substantial uptake combined with greater long-term suitability for roadside management. Overall, this study presents a quantitative framework for phytoremediation species selection and provides experimental evidence supporting both annual and perennial species for mitigating deicing salt contamination through environmentally sustainable, low-input roadside management strategies.